


Saving Us

by Phoenix94



Series: More Than That [3]
Category: Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare, Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Cat/Human Hybrids, Character Death, Implied/Referenced Torture, M/M, POV Alternating, Sequel, Tragedy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-11
Updated: 2016-07-21
Packaged: 2018-07-22 21:37:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,488
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7454764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phoenix94/pseuds/Phoenix94
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's been 3 years since Alec brought Magnus home. Things couldn't be better for them. They both have careers. Magnus's mental health has improved. Max is happy. And then someone begins attacking hybrids.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Magnus

I stare up at Alec groggily as he throws on his scrubs.

  "What's wrong?" I croak, sitting up.

  "Emergency. Kai's hurt. I don't know what happened or how bad he's hurt or when I'll be back. I'll call you as soon as I can. I love you," he replies, kissing me softly before he leaves.

  I'm too worried to go back to sleep, even though it's three in the morning. I'm worried about Kai. I'm worried about Alec and Max if something happens to Kai. I don't know how to explain to a nine-year-old kid about death.

  Instead of just lying in bed, I make my way downstairs to the salon I have in the back of our townhouse. Flipping the light on and gazing around my salon still fills me with immense pride and a feeling of accomplishment. I've only had it about four months, which is how long we've lived in the townhouse, but I haven't had much business so far. A lot of people are still reluctant to trust a hybrid to cut their hair. I turn my iPod on low and begin checking my inventory.

  Six long, agonizing hours later, Alec calls.

  "How is he? What happened?" I ask.

  "He could die. Don't bring Max to see him right now. The cops think someone's copycatting the Circle's attacks. His whole family's gone. He's really hurt. I'm gonna stay here for a little bit to keep an eye on him," Alec replies.

  "Are Max and I gonna be safe alone? Or with your mother?"

  "I don't--Gotta go! I love you. I'll call you when I can."

  Before he hangs up, I hear the angry beeping of a machine in the background.

  The patter of feet on the hardwood floor makes me look up. Max is standing the doorway. His bright blue eyes gaze up at me worriedly.

  "What's going on?" he asks.

  "Alec had an emergency at work to deal with. Are you ready for breakfast?" I reply.

  "Can I cook it?"

  "Only if I'm with you. It's not that I don't trust you."

  He's grinning excitedly as he runs to the kitchen. Chuckling to myself, I follow him. I love how excited he gets over things.

  "What do you wanna make?" I ask, scooting the step stool over to the counter for him.

  "Can we have waffles? With cheese in them? And mushrooms and green onions?" he replies, gazing up at me hopefully.

  "We can try it."

  I love teaching him how to cook. He's a quick learner. In the two weeks since he asked me to teach him, he's learned how to make grilled cheese in the oven, rice in the microwave, eggs, and mac and cheese. He's learned how to use the microwave.

  "How's school? Have you made more friends?" I ask, pouring the batter into the waffle iron.

  "I don't like it. Not really. One of the teachers likes to pull our tails. He yelled at me for scratching him yesterday," he replies, ears drooping.

  "Who is he? He should have never pulled your tail. Max, I'm gonna talk to Alec about it whenever he gets back and we'll probably talk to the principal about it. I'm glad you told me."

  "Sebastian Verlac. None of us like him."

  "I don't know him."

  I thought I knew every hybrid-hating psycho in Brooklyn. I guess not.

  "You're lucky. I think I might actually like Jace more than him," Max informs me, closing the lid on the waffle iron.

  "That is bad," I murmur.

  He settles on the floor with his toy cars after breakfast while I reschedule my three appointments from today for tomorrow. With two hours of sleep, I shouldn't be handling sharp objects near someone's head.

  "When's Alec coming home?" Max asks when I hang up.

  "I don't know. He said he was gonna be at Catarina's office a while," I reply.

  Alec calls again at noon.

  "Are things any better?" I ask.

  "Magnus, he just died. He--We couldn't save him," Alec chokes.

  "I'm sorry. Do you want us to come get you? When's the funeral?"

  "You're not putting yourselves at risk. Tomorrow. Does Max know?"

  "No. I'm waiting until you get home. You're not handling it well, are you?"

  "No. Those monsters killed a kid, Mags. It could've been our son. It could've been you."

  That's when he completely falls apart. I hate when he cries because I know things have to be really bad for it to happen.

  "Baby, it's gonna be okay. We're gonna be fine," I murmur gently.

  "I'm covered in a kid's blood. And I couldn't fix him. I hate how cruel people are," he sobs.

  "You know what I'm gonna do? I'm gonna run you a nice warm bubble bath when you get home and lay out your comfiest clothes and I'll make you tea and let you unwind. Sound good?"

  "That sounds really good. I love you. Are you okay with what happened?"

  "I'm not as worried as you are. It hasn't sunk in yet."

  Alec looks like he's five seconds from falling apart again when he walks in the front door. His blue eyes are puffy and red from his earlier breakdown.

  "Whose blood is that?" Max asks.

  "Max, honey, we need to talk to you about something very important," I reply carefully.

  "You know how you were gonna stay the weekend at Kai's house?" Alec asks, kneeling in front of Max.

  "Yeah. Did I mess up and now you won't let me go?" Max replies, his forehead crinkling adorably.

  "No, honey. Um, someone hurt Kai really, really badly last night, and Kai died. You remember when I first brought you home and you asked what death was when I was reading _Harry Potter_ to you? That's what happened to Kai. Does that make sense?"

  "Someone performed the Killing Curse on him? You said it wasn't real. Why'd they hurt Kai?"

  "No, Max, he died because he was hurt so badly. Because some people are horrible, evil creatures."

  "Are they gonna hurt us too?"

  "They better not. Are you okay?"

  Max shakes his head slowly. I watch as he crawls onto Alec's lap and buries his face into Alec's neck. Max's choked, gasping sobs break my heart. I find myself kneeling beside Max and putting my arms around them both. I hate seeing either of them in pain.


	2. Alec

  I really don't wanna leave Max, but I need to change out of my bloodied scrubs.

  "I'm almost willing to take the pay cut and go back to my tech job if it means I never have to deal with trying to save someone and losing them again," I admit in the bathroom.

  "I can't imagine how hard it is. If that's what you wanna do, I'll support you all the way. Do they have an idea of who did it?" Magnus replies.

  "We'd lose the house. If it wasn't for that, I would. I may look for a better job that isn't at a vet's office. They don't know who did it. There wasn't any DNA left behind."

  I sigh heavily as I strip off my bloody scrubs. I reek of blood and antiseptic.

  "Do you want some company while you soak or do you want me to stay with Max?" Magnus offers as I step into the warm bubble bath.

  "Mags, I'm really not in the mood," I reply.

  "I wasn't meaning that sort of company. I was just gonna stay in here and talk like you did for me after Jace attacked me."

  "Lean down."

  I kiss him softly when he obeys.

  "You are the sweetest, most caring person I've ever met," I murmur.

  "I love you. Can you believe it's been almost three years since we first met?" he replies, stroking my hair tenderly.

  "I know. You're a lot different than you were when I adopted you. Why don't you keep an eye on Max?"

  He kisses me sweetly before trotting out of the bathroom.

  Being alone means I get to cry without Magnus seeing. I like him seeing me cry as much as he likes me seeing him cry.

  "Baby, Clary's here. She needs to talk to you," Mags calls outside the bathroom door.

  _So much for relaxing,_ I groan silently, climbing out of the warm water.

  Clary looks fairly angry when Magnus and I step into the living room.

  "What's going on? Did Jace do something stupid again?" I ask.

  "Are you interested in taking another hybrid? His name's Trevor. He's ten. I got him the last time Jace and I split up. Jace hates him. I was hoping it might get better, but it's getting worse. He hurts Trevor a lot. Was I interrupting something?" she says.

  "When can we meet him? I was trying to decompress from a kid dying. His name was Kai. He was a friend of Max's. Someone tortured him, and I couldn't save him."

  There aren't words enough for the amount of self-loathing I feel.

  "He's out in my car. I'm sorry, Alec. How's Max taking it?" she murmurs, patting my shoulder lightly.

  "Go ahead and bring him in. He's in his room. He wanted to be alone," Magnus replies.

  Trevor offers us a shy smile. He's tall for his age. His fluffy ginger tabby ears flicker back into his dark hair when I step too close. His amber eyes, nearly the same color as pumpkins, are fearful.

  "Trevor, this is Alec and Magnus. They might be adopting you. They're very nice," Clary tells him, petting his hair slowly.

  "Did I do something wrong, Mistress? I didn't mean to make him angry. Really. I'm sorry," he whimpers.

  "No, you've been a perfect little angel. You didn't do anything wrong. I don't want him to hurt you ever again."

  "Are they gonna hurt me like he did?"

  "No. Magnus wasn't treated good either when we first met. I've never hurt him or Max. We won't hurt you," I murmur.

  "He touched me."

  A low growl rumbles from Magnus's chest at these words.

  "Did he hurt you when he touched you?" I ask roughly, trying to swallow the lump in my throat.

  "Uh-huh. He made me touch him," Trevor whispers.

  "Jace should go to jail for that."

  "He's going to. Trevor was treated for the injuries Jace gave him," Clary tells us.

  "Good. Trevor, honey, why don't you go explore?"

  He walks like each step hurt.

  "I want to tear Jace apart," Magnus mumbles.

  "You're not the only one. Do you wanna adopt him?" I reply, taking Mags' hand gently.

  Magnus nods slowly.

  "I've got his papers. He'll probably get taller than Magnus. He's a Maine Coon; they're known for their size. He's used to helping me around the house. He's just recently gotten used to sleeping in a bed. He does wet the bed sometimes," Clary tells us.

  "What exactly did Jace do?" I ask.

  "He physically and verbally abused Trevor. Trevor scares easy. Loud voices will make him hide. He wasn't used to it before Jace and I got back together. Jace whipped him and used his hands to hit him. He also kicked Trevor. You know he raped Trevor."

  "What's his personality?"

  "He's a sweetie. He's friendly. He's extremely intelligent. If he trusts you, he'll probably try snuggling up against you."

  "Does he have any health problems?"

  "None that I know of." 

  We've just signed the papers when Trevor comes back in. His amber eyes watch us nervously.

  "Trevor, you're gonna live here now. Alec and Magnus adopted you," Clary tells him, unbuckling his collar.

  "I wanna stay with you," he whispers.

  "You'll be safer here. I promise."

  He tries to run out the door after her. He scratches the crap outta my arms in his efforts to get away.

  "Don't hurt me. Please. I didn't mean for him to hurt me. I was bad," he murmurs fearfully, curling up in the corner.

  He looks terrified.

  "Trevor, Jace is a bad person. He hurt Magnus like he hurt you. He had no right doing anything to you. Okay?" I murmur, kneeling in front of him.

  He hisses at me. His ears flatten. His already poofy tail fluffs up in fear. His long, skinny fingers curl into claws so he can scratch me again.

  "We're not gonna hurt you. I promise," I tell him, scooting back.

  He doesn't relax. His stomach rumbles softly.

  "Why don't we fix you guys supper?" I offer, smiling.

  "I'll go get Max. I'll cook tonight, babe. You need to rest," Magnus replies, kissing me softly.

  Trevor looks absolutely shocked to see Magnus kiss me.

  "Is he a sex pet?" he asks nervously.

  "He was before I adopted him. We're married," I explain, showing him my ring.

  "You like him?"

  "No. I love him. A lot. He's incredible."

  "I never knew we could be loved."

  "You can be. You will be here. Magnus and I have a son named Max. He's a neko too. He'll be ten next month."

  "So does he have to do chores and cook?"

  "He has to clean his room and bathroom once a week. He's learning how to cook, but he asked us to teach him. Is there anything you like to do?"

  "I like pleasing my master."

  "You don't have to call us master. You can call us by our names. Okay? As soon as possible, we're gonna set you free and adopt you as our child. Does that sound okay?"

  "Are you sure? I don't understand. You don't want to own me?"

  "I'm sure. By setting you free, you'll be able to do more than if you stay our pet."

  "Oh. So you're doing it to help me?"

  Yawning hugely, I nod. I'm beginning to feel the effects of having been up since two-thirty in the morning.

  "You won't hurt me like he did, right?" Trevor asks quietly.

  "No, we won't. You can trust us. Is there anything you'd like to know about us?" I reply.

  "Why did you adopt us?"

  "My sister talked me into adopting a hybrid the first time, which was how I met Magnus. We adopted Max because he'd had a bad life."

  "How long have you had Magnus?"

  "We've known each other almost three years. We've been married for a little over two."

  "Does he love you?"

  "He does. He's amazing."

  "You didn't make him do anything with you?"

  "No. I'd never hurt him like that."

  "Oh. I, um, my breeder's son thought it was funny to do to us. I was his favorite."

  "He shouldn't have done that. Are you okay? How long ago did it happen?"

  "Yeah, I'm fine. Why? A couple months ago."

  "I didn't know if you were having problems coping with it. Magnus and I won't do anything like that to you."

  "I'm okay."

  "Do you wanna come with me while I check on Max?"

  He pads after me quietly.

  Max is hugging his pillow and rocking on the bed. Tears are streaming down his thin cheeks. His ears flatten when he sees Trevor. I'm surprised when he hisses angrily; Max is usually friendly with other hybrids.

  "Hey, sweetie. I wanted to check on you," I murmur.

  "Who's _he_?" Max spits, glaring at Trevor.

  "This is Trevor. We adopted him. Jace was mean to him."

  A low growl rumbles from Max's chest. He _never_ growls at anyone.

  "Trevor, can you go help Magnus for a minute?" I murmur quietly.

  Trevor nearly runs away.

  "I miss Kai. Why didn't you save him? That's your job!" Max spits, throwing his pillow at me angrily.

  "Max, you do not throw things at people. I don't care how mad you are at me. I did everything in my power to help Kai. Believe me. H-he crashed while he was in recovery and we couldn't save him. Is there a reason you're so upset? I know you and Kai were really close," I reply.

  "I liked Kai."

  "Like or _like like_?"

  "The second one."

  "Oh. Did he know?"

  "I kissed him. And he kissed me back."

  "Um, Max, honey, you're nine. You don't need to be kissing boys yet."

  "I really miss him."

  "I know, sweetie."

  "I thought you brought Trevor in to replace him."

  "No. Trevor needed a better home, so we adopted him. He doesn't bite. Do you wanna say hi?"

  "Maybe later. Sorry I threw the pillow at you."

  "We're good, okay? You didn't do more than kiss him, right?"

  "It was just the one kiss."

  "Okay, good."

  He hugs me before I go.

  Trevor edges away from me nervously when I step into the kitchen.

  "Max thought we adopted you to replace his friend who died this morning," I tell him.

  "Did you?" Trevor asks.

  "Nope. We wanted you to have a good life."

  "Did Max sprout another head or something? Or grow wings? You look freaked out," Magnus remarks, sliding a frozen pizza into the oven.

  "No. I'll explain tonight."

  The sound of soft footsteps makes me turn. Max slinks in shyly. Trevor's ears flatten nervously as he backs away.

  "Sorry I growled and hissed at you," Max mumbles.

  Watching the pair make up makes me smile.

  "Boop!" Max giggles, poking Trevor's nose and running away.

  Trevor gazes up at me questioningly.

  "He wants you to chase him," I explain.

  Trevor trots off in the direction Max went.

  "You look wiped out," Magnus murmurs, taking my hand gently.

  "I am. My fumes are running on fumes," I reply, resting my head on his shoulder.

  "Do you think they'll get along? How're you holding up?"

  "I hope so. If I don't think about it, I don't wanna cry."

  Part of me hopes I'll wake up in the morning and it will all be a nightmare, but I know it isn't true.


	3. Magnus

  Alec doesn't even get to go to bed. There's an emergency call at a breeder, which means he'll be delivering hybrid babies on very little sleep. I don't like him having to go out while he's so tired.

  Afraid to sleep, I make myself at home on the couch with his grandma's quilt. I flip through one of my hairstyle magazines while I wait for him to come home.

  Blinking sleepily, I gaze up at Alec.

  "What time is it?" I ask.

  "Two. It was a quick delivery," he yawns.

  "I'm glad you're back. I was planning on staying awake until you got home."

  He kisses me softly.

  "I love you. Can we go to bed?" he murmurs.

  "I love you more. Whenever you want, darling. You can tell me all about the babies in the morning," I reply.

  He passes out almost instantly when we get in bed. He looks so peaceful asleep.

  Alec's still snoozing when I get up. I plan on letting him sleep as long as possible.

  Trevor's already made breakfast when I walk into the kitchen. A normal ten-year-old could probably make scrambled eggs and toast or cereal. He's made bacon, muffins, omelets, and filled four glasses with orange juice.

  "Trevor, this looks delicious!" I compliment, smiling warmly.

  His ears prick up happily at the praise.

  "Thank you. I wanted to please you," he replies, smiling shyly.

  "What time did you get up?" I ask.

  "Four. The muffins took a while. I wasn't sure what kind you guys liked. So I made more than one kind. Did I do okay? There's lemon poppyseed, blueberry, chocolate, and I made orange cranberry. You're out of flour. Sorry."

  The way his skinny body tenses makes me want to strangle Jace. Again.

  "Sweetie, you did fine. You don't have to make us breakfast, though. The muffins smell amazing!" I tell him gently.

  "Mistress didn't like for me to do it either. He hit me if I didn't do it right or cooked the wrong thing," he admits.

  "Jace is a jerk face."

  He grins up at me at that.

  "Where's Alec?" he asks.

  "Asleep. He's really wiped-out," I explain.

  "Oh. Why?"

  "He had a really rough day yesterday and had to get up at three in the morning. He's a vet."

  "Will he be the one doing my checkups?"

  "Probably. He's a good vet."

  "He really didn't make you do any of that stuff?"

  "Nope. He's not like Jace."

  "I'm glad."

  "I'm gonna get Max up and then we can eat. I'm gonna let Alec sleep for a while."

  I like watching the two boys together. Trevor doesn't act any more sure around Max than he does around us, but he's trying.

  Alec wanders into the salon around noon. He's eating a muffin.

  "Hey, baby. You sleep okay?" I murmur, going to kiss him.

  "Yeah, I did. Thanks for letting me sleep. Did you make these?" he replies.

  "Trevor. He's been up since four."

  "Why? Catarina told me not to come in. I'm still on call for emergencies, though."

  "He thought he was supposed to make breakfast. Jace hit him if he messed it up or didn't cook the right stuff. Clary didn't like him cooking breakfast either."

  "Remind me again why I didn't kill Jace."

  "Because prison is basically what I went through for eight years. Only I doubt they're allowed to videotape it."

  "Good reason. Is Izzy off?"

  "Today's her day off."

  "So who fills in?"

  "I do."

  "I can do it if you want."

  I want to tell him 'no' so badly, but I'll need the help if a rush hits.

  "If I start getting slammed, I'll take you up on it," I tell him.

  "Can you show me the system?" he asks.

  "Post-its, my dear. Lots and lots of Post-its."

  "Post-Its are a bad idea, but okay."

  "As soon as I can afford it, I wanna get a computer in here. Izzy spilled frappe on some of the papers a couple days ago, and I had no idea what the people's names are or when their appointments were. So what were you so freaked out about yesterday?"

  "Max kissed Kai."

  "You kiss me all the time, darling. Why would it freak you out?"

  "He's still a baby. He shouldn't be kissing boys."

  "I was doing a lot more than kissing boys when I was his age. He's grown  up a lot."

  "Yeah, he has. And it's scary. And depressing."

  "He's turned out pretty well, considering neither of us have ever raised a child. What time is Kai's funeral?"

   "Four. Max is gonna be so torn up. I hate it."

   "I don't like it either."

   "I feel like it was my fault. Catarina and I did everything we could."

   "I know you did. How would it be your fault?"

   "Because there should've been some way to help him."

   "I'm sorry. Do they have an idea of who did it?"

   "No. There was no DNA. No nothing. The funeral is closed casket. It has to be."

   "That bad?"

   "Yeah. H-he wouldn't have had a very good life if he'd survived. He'd been bludgeoned. One leg was so damaged it had to be amputated. His eyeballs were hanging out of  his face, Magnus. His ears and tail were hacked off. Over half of his bones were broken."

   The description makes me sick. I know it could've very well been my fate if it wasn't for Alec.

   "He was the only one tortured. Everyone else was shot," Alec adds quietly.

   "What if that happens to Max or Trevor?" I ask.

   "I'll do everything in my power to save them. And you."

   Our conversation is ended by a woman leading a skinny neko in. He's trembling. His dark amber eyes are terrified. His black hair is matted enough I can't tell if it's straight or curly.

  "Hi. Can I help you?" Alec says pleasantly, smiling.

  "Yeah. He needs a hair cut," she replies.

  "Come back here, sweetie, and I'll get you taken care of," I tell him, motioning to my station.

  He stays statue-still the entire time. He doesn't even flick his ears or tail.

  "Here. You did good, so you get a sucker," I tell him, offering him the jar of suckers I keep for hybrids and kids.

  He takes one hesitantly.

  "He looks great! Keep the change," I hear the woman tell Alec as I'm sweeping up.

  I freeze when I hear Alec's phone chirp.

  "What's wrong?" I call warily.

  "Nothing. It's just a text from Clary to see how Trevor's settling," he replies.

  "Okay. I was afraid of another emergency."

  "Not yet. Luke was at the office when Kai died. He thinks more attacks will happen."

  "Do you?"

  "Unfortunately, I agree with him. And it terrifies me."

  Sighing heavily, he runs a hand through his hair. I hate seeing him upset.

  "Hey. It'll be fine. We're always fine," I tell him encouragingly, kissing his cheek.

  "Last time you said that, you almost died," he reminds me.

  "But I didn't. I was fine."

  "Magnus, we might not be this time. I'm already wondering if we should pull the boys out of school."

  My eyebrows arch in surprise. There's been _one_ attack. It isn't like there's been war declared on hybrids yet.

  "Alec, I think we should wait to make a decision like that," I say carefully.

  "Aren't you worried about this? You're a hybrid, Magnus! Just because we're married doesn't mean something like that can't happen. They're not gonna give a crap if you have your ID or not. They're not gonna check to see if you have a wedding ring or not. All they're gonna care about is you being part cat and I'll lose you again and I can't stand the thought of being without you," Alec shouts, making me flinch.

  Ears flat, I stare at him warily. I've never heard him raise his voice. I don't like him yelling anymore than I do anyone else.

  "I am worried, Alexander. I'm not an idiot. I know things can happen, but I am not going to live my life being terrified of every person I pass on the street. Not again. You think I really wanna leave you again? I don't. I hate the idea of leaving you and the boys. You want the truth? It scares me as much as it scares you. And I'm trying not to tell you because your plate is already heaping. I am fully aware of the fact I could die the minute I go outside," I reply quietly, flattening my ears tight against my skull.

  "I wanna protect you. I can't lose you or the boys. You guys are my world. I just want to make sure you're living in reality and know how dangerous it could end up. I'm sorry for yelling," he tells me.

  "I know better than you think how dangerous it is."


	4. Alec

  Sighing, I tuck my black shirt into my black jeans. The color black has never been this depressing. If my gut's right, this won't be the last time I find the color depressing.

  "Ready, darling?" Magnus asks, wrapping his arm around my waist.

  "As I'll ever be," I mumble.

  I'm thankful our earlier spat has been forgotten about.

  Max and Trevor are already dressed and ready to go. Trevor's playing with Chairman Meow with a string.

  "Ready to go, munchkins?" Magnus asks.

  Max nods sadly. Trevor doesn't seem bothered by it, but he never knew Kai.

  The funeral is being held in the back of the vet office. Catarina and I picked everything out. A small red casket is propped up in front of the window. Its lid is shut, thankfully. There's a spray of baby's breath on top of it. I want to start crying at the sight of the casket, but being there for Max is much more important right now.

  "W-why's it shut?" Max asks, gazing up at me with teary blue eyes.

   "Because he was hurt so badly. It's more respectful to him," I explain.

   _And I didn't want you to have nightmares,_ I add silently.

   "Can I say goodbye?" he asks.

   "Of course. Do you want one of us to go with you?" I reply.

   He shakes his head.

   I watch as he approaches the casket slowly, his bobtail twitching. Magnus reaches for my hand as Max places one of his own on the casket's side.

   "You okay?" Magnus whispers.

   "No. I just wanna get him through this. I'll take care of me later," I reply.

   Max is up there a long time before Catarina and the preacher come in to start the ceremony. Max slinks away from the casket at their arrival. I hate seeing my little boy cry like this. He does something he hasn't done in a while: He asks Magnus to pick him up. My heart breaks as I listen to him sobbing against Magnus's neck.

   Looking at Magnus, I see he's as torn up about this as Max and I. He lets go of my hand to rub Max's back comfortingly. Needing to touch him, I settle for rubbing slow circles between his shoulder blades.

  "Today, you're my gravity," I whisper in his ear.

   The entire ceremony takes maybe fifteen minutes. Max is still clinging tightly to Magnus as we go out to the grave site.

   "We'll bring you here whenever you want," I tell Max.

   Max has stopped crying by the time the funeral has ended. He's hiccuping and making the same mewling whimpers Magnus makes when he's terrified.

   "Trevor, you wanna ride up front with Alec?" Magnus asks.

   "Sure!" Trevor replies, clambering into the front seat.

   He's tall enough he can do this.

   "Max, honey, do you want us to take you somewhere for supper?" I offer gently.

   "I--Hic--guess," he mumbles.

   He's started crying full-out again by the time we get to Taki's. His soft sobs are heartbreaking.

  "Max, do you wanna wait a little bit before we go in?" Magnus asks.

  "N-no," Max chokes.

  Max picks at his food. Trevor keeps rubbing his back soothingly.

  At home, Max wants to be left alone. It worries me, but I know he does need time to process this on his own.

  "Trevor, you wanna play a game with us?" I ask, setting up the Scrabble board on the coffee table.

  "Okay! What're we playing?" he replies happily.

  "Scrabble. It's a word game."

  "Okay."

  It's very nice to relax and play a game with Magnus and Trevor. After the past couple days, I need this.

  After a couple games, I decide to check on Max. He's curled up on his side, crying. He's holding a picture Magnus took of he and Kai together.

  "Hey, sweetie. You okay?" I murmur gently.

  "No. Am I supposed to be?" he replies.

  "No. If you were, I'd be giving you a checkup 'cause something would be wrong with you. You wanna talk about it?"

  "Not with you."

  His words hurt a lot more than I know he means for them to.

  "I understand. Do you want me to send Magnus in?" I reply.

  "Yeah. I want him back," Max whimpers.

  "I know you do. I'm sorry you have to go through this."

  If I could, I would bubblewrap this little boy and put him in a soundproofed padded room so nothing would ever hurt him again. I hate seeing him suffer.

  "Is it bad that I'm glad it wasn't me or Magnus?" he asks.

  "No, it's human. I'll go get Magnus," I reply.

  Trevor glances up at me warily when I sit back down.

  "You okay?" I ask gently.

  "Yeah. I never knew the one who died. Is Max okay?" he replies.

  "Not really. He and Kai were best friends. He was gonna be staying the weekend with them."

  "What happened? I mean, why did he die?"

  "People replicating the Circle attacks. We thought we could save him, but he was too badly hurt. He would've been blind. He'd been beaten very badly."

   "I don't know anything about the Circle."

   "They were a group of people who killed and tortured hybrids. My parents were members. My mother is still iffy sometimes."

   "You're not like them? Will she hurt us?"

   "Far from it. She hasn't always been the nicest to Magnus, but she adores Max. I try to be here whenever she is."

   "Will she hurt me?"

   "I doubt it."

   "Do you like being a vet?"

   "I love it, unless it's a case like Kai's. That's the only bad day I've really had."

   "He used to hurt me more if he had a bad day."

   "That's because Jace is a major jerk. Magnus and I will never hurt you guys if we have a bad day."

   I'm very surprised when he hugs me. And then he sneezes on me.

   "Sorry," he sniffs, pulling back.

   "It's fine. Do you have any homework you need help with?" I reply, smiling.

   Doing something normal like helping him with his homework helps.

   "Trevor, honey, it's ten. Go take a bath and go to bed," I tell him as he's putting his homework away.

   "See you in the morning?" he asks.

  "I have to work tomorrow, but I should be home around four."

  He hugs me before slinking off to their bedroom.

  Sighing tiredly, I make my way to mine and Magnus's room. I'm not looking forward to going back to work in the morning.

   "Hey, darling. Max is finally calmed down. How're you doing with all this?" Magnus says as he comes in.

   "Not the greatest," I reply.

  "How can I help?"

  "I don't know. If you could work magic and get me to stop blaming myself, it'd help."

  "Alexander, it wasn't your fault. I know you didn't halfway try to save him."

  "There had to be something I could've done."

  "Stop. Kai dying was no more your fault than Ragnor beating me was mine. It was not in your control, so quit beating yourself up. I know you did everything you could to save him. I know Catarina did her best. People are deplorable creatures."

  "I wish it hadn't been real for Max's sake. You realize I'm not a hybrid, right?"

  "I know. I don't think of you, Izzy, or Clary as people. People are vile creatures. You guys aren't. Max is gonna be okay eventually."

  "I want him to be okay. How're you dealing with it?"

  "I'm more worried about you and Max than I'm upset. Tomorrow will be better."

  Snuggling against his chest, I can only hope he's right. I need tomorrow to be a brighter day with no one dying.


	5. Magnus

                                                5

  Today starts off the same as yesterday. I get the boys ready for school and feed them breakfast. The only difference is I'm voting for the first time today. Izzy and Alec are going to be meeting me there, unless Alec has another emergency, because Alec is the only one of us who's voted before.

  I wasn't expecting there to be such a crowd in the voting center. I get quite a few dirty looks, whether they're for my ears and tail or the way I'm dressed I'm not sure. It doesn't really matter.

  I'm very glad when Alec and Izzy get here. The glares increase when Alec takes my hand.

  "Don't worry about them. How's work going?" I murmur.

  "Great. Everything's been routine so far," he replies.

  The dirty looks I received earlier are nothing compared to when we go to get our ballots.

  "Excuse me. Hybrids are not allowed to vote," a woman says, pushing me back.

  "Excuse me, but I believe you're wrong," I reply, flashing my ID.

  "That doesn't matter. You are still a filthy animal."

  "I'll be outside."

  I kiss Alec quickly, earning quite a few surprised gasps, before stalking out. If I were to defend myself further, it would have only escalated and possibly gotten my deemed psychotic.

   I sink irritably to a snowy bench. I really hope it doesn't take long for Alec to come back.

  Alec is not happy when he comes out. His angry blue eyes remind me of the sparklers we lit for the Fourth of July.

  "You would think people would stop being so prejuidiced!" he growls.

  "Alec, I'm used to it," I reply.

  "That--What happened was illegal, Magnus. You have the right to vote. Those papers Jia gave me said so. Taking that right away because they don't like hybrids is discrimination, which is illegal. It'd be like telling Izzy not to vote because she's a girl."

  "They were giving me dirty looks long before I tried voting."

  I'm very glad when I get back inside the warm townhouse. I make myself a mug of hot cocoa and open the salon for business. Izzy takes her spot behind the desk.

  "I really can't believe they did that," Izzy tells me.

  "It doesn't bother me as much as it bothers you guys," I reply.

  "It should!"

  "Izzy, being told I can't vote is nothing. You've seen my scars."

  "I know."

  It's hard to concentrate on my work today. I'm a little worried about the voting results.

  "If you guys want, Simon and I can keep the boys this weekend," Izzy offers.

  "We can talk to them and Alec when they get home," I reply.

  Alec is in a better mood when he comes home. Trevor agrees to stay at Izzy and Simon's. Max doesn't want to, which is understandable.

  "Wanna stay up and watch the results?" I ask.

  "Yeah, I guess," he replies, snuggling against me.

  I smile when Max tucks himself under my other arm.

  "You okay, sweetie?" I murmur, rubbing his back gently.

  "Still sad, but I'm okay," he replies.

  The majority of the people elected are anti-neko. It worries me.

  "Are we gonna be okay?" Max asks worriedly.

  "We are gonna be just fine," I reply, petting his hair.

  He calms down at this.

  Max goes to bed at ten, leaving Alec and I alone.

  "We're not fine. I just don't want Max worrying more than he needs to be," I murmur.

  "We're far from fine. If anything happens to you guys, will anything be done?" Alec replies.

  "I highly doubt it."

  "What about keeping me from worrying?"

  I kiss him softly.

  "I don't want you to worry. But I know you _are_ worried. I'm worried too, Alexander," I murmur.

  "We could always move if things get bad," he tells me.

  "What's your definition of bad?"

  "Either the attacks get worse or something happens to you or the boys. Honestly, I have no idea what we'll do if it gets bad."

  It isn't very reassuring to hear he isn't any more sure of what to do than I am.

 


	6. Alec

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Little bit gory for the first few paragraphs. This is what happens when a writer binge-watches vet shows.

  It's six in the morning, and I'm already prepping for my first surgery. Thankfully, it's not a Circle repeat this time. Instead, this poor inu is a victim of abuse.

  Drawing a deep breath, I make my first incision in the inu's forearm. His radius and ulna are both badly broken. The plan is to set the bones with a plate, stitch his arm, put it in a cast, and move onto his other injuries. The broken arm is something I've fixed more often than I care to admit.

  After piecing the ruined skin of his back together, I place him in one of the recovery rooms. I'm unable to stay with him because there's a more pressing emergency in OR 2.

  The sight of the tortured neko on the operating table makes me swallow bile.

  "It's bad," Catarina informs me, gesturing to the badly burned and beaten body.

  "Where do I start?" I ask.

  "You're gonna help me with the internal bleeding. His eyes aren't salvageable. Can you take care of that while I fix the breaks?"

   "Yes, ma'am."

   The internal bleeding is bad. It takes us longer than we can afford to find the source and get it stopped. His spleen, gall bladder, and appendix are in pieces, so we remove them.

   "Poor thing," I mumble, getting started on the enucleation.

   This is easily the grossest thing I've ever done in surgery.

   I glance at his vitals as I finish the last stitches on his eyelids. Surprisingly, he's fine.

   "Now what?" I ask.

   "See how much skin you think can be saved," she replies.

   Sixty-five percent of his body is covered in third- and second-degree burns. There are places on his skinny arms that are covered in fourth-degree burns, meaning the burns go all the way to his bones.

  "It's bad, Cat. Really bad," I murmur.

  "He's gonna need skin grafts," she tells me, glancing at his badly burned arms.

   "I'll stay with him for a while."

   The poor thing is terrified when he wakes up.

   "Shh. Shh. You're okay, Nico. I promise," I murmur soothingly, stilling him the best I can.

   "Why can't I see? Where am I?" he whimpers.

   "Your eyes were badly damaged. You're in a vet clinic. My name's Alec. I helped in the surgery to save your life. Are you in pain?"

   "Yes."

   "Can you rank it from 1-10 for me?"

   "It's a nine."

   "Okay. I'll get you something for it. Would you like some water?"

   He nods slowly.

   I hold the water while he sips it through a straw. His arms, hands, legs, and torso are heavily bandaged.

   "Did you see who did it? There's a police officer here named Luke who's gonna catch the people who hurt you," I say gently.

   "I saw," he murmurs.

   "What did they look like?"

   "Th-they were wearing masks."

   "Like Halloween masks?"

   "Y-yeah. They were scary-looking."

   "I know this is going to be very hard to talk about, but can you tell me what they did and how many of them there were?"

   "There were four of them. Men. One of them was my master; I recognized his voice. Th-th-they beat me with a baseball bat and then they poured gasoline on me and lit it. I rolled around until I stopped burning."

   "I'm sorry you had to suffer like that. Back to the masks, can you describe them for me?"

   "Uh-huh. One had a vampire mask, one had a clown mask, one had a werewolf mask, and Master had a zombie mask."

  "You got it all, Luke?"

  "Yeah. Thank you for cooperating with Alec and I, Nico," Luke replies, leaving.

  "Are you gonna be okay by yourself? I have another patient to check on," I say.

   Nico nods quietly.

   The inu is doing great. His tail thumps happily against the bed when I walk in.

   "How's your arm feel?" I ask.

   "Okay. Um, what's gonna happen to me?" he replies, gazing up at me with worried brown eyes.

   "You'll probably go to a rescue or the pound. Is there anything you need?"

   "Thank you."

   "You're welcome. I love it when things turn out this well. If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask."

   "Okay."

   The rest of today is routine with just checkups. I'm extremely thankful I get off at noon today.

   "Alec, how're you handling what happened with Kai?" Catarina asks as we close up.

  "I'm glad it wasn't Max or Trevor or Mags, but I hate that it was him. I blame myself because I couldn't save him," I reply.

  "Alec, it wasn't your fault."

  "That's what Magnus has told me too."

  "Is Max doing any better?"

  "He's still extremely sad, but he's coping."

  "I'm glad he's coping. If you have an emergencies, call me."

  Magnus is playing on the floor with Max when I get home.

  "Did someone else die?" Max asks, ears flattening as he gazes at my bloodied scrubs.

  "No. I had two surgeries. Abused inu and another attack victim. This one was older than Kai and not as badly damaged. I had to take his eyeballs out," I reply.

  "Eww! What was wrong with him?"

  "He was beaten and burned really badly."

  "Do they know who did it?" Magnus asks.

  "People in Halloween masks, one of whom was the poor thing's owner," I reply.

  "People in Halloween masks are attacking hybrids. That's what you said?"

  "Yes, Magnus, that's exactly what I said."

  "I was hoping maybe I didn't hear you right."

  I ask him why. Sometimes, I honestly have no clue how his brain works.

  "I'd probably laugh at whoever it was instead of being terrified," he explains.

  "You're so strange sometimes, but I love you anyway. I'm gonna take a shower and throw these in the laundry," I tell him, leaning down to kiss him and ruffle Max's hair.

  I notice the light on my phone flashing as I'm toweling off. Curious, I unlock it. I have three missed calls from Clary in a fifteen-minute window.

  _This cannot be good,_ I think, dialing her number.


	7. Magnus

Alec's on his phone when he comes back in pajama pants. I think it's really cute he accidentally grabbed a pair of mine. His brow's furrowed in worry as he paces.

  "What's going on, Clary?" he asks.

  He's quiet for a moment before he swears angrily. Max giggles next to me. He's never heard Alec talk like that before.

  "I am going to kill him. I swear it, Clary. If he comes near my house, he's dead," Alec groans.

 _What'd Jace do this time?_ I wonder, pricking my ears up.

  "Let me know. Please. Thank you. Bye," he tells her, hanging up.

  He no longer looks worried. He looks furious.

  "What'd Jace do?" I ask.

  "He--He's helping do this to hybrids. He told Clary what he did to Nico, the burn victim. I will kill him if he comes near any of you," Alec replies tensely, raking a hand through his hair.

   "I was hoping I'd be surprised and maybe he was helping hybrids. Don't worry, darling. I won't let him touch the kids. How'd he get out of jail this time?"

   "Posted bail like always."

   "I'm sorry."

  "I'm the sorry one. My brother's a psychopath."

  "It isn't your fault."

  "Is Trevor safe?" Max asks.

  "I'm gonna call Iz and find out, okay? I wouldn't put it past Jace to go over there and attack Trevor."

  Alec looks extremely relieved when he gets off the phone with Izzy.

  "Trevor's fine. Izzy wants to throttle Jace too," he tells us.

  "Does he know we have Trevor?" I ask.

  "Not that I know of. He knows about Max."

  "And me. He's hated me from day one."

  I know first-hand what Jace is capable of. I never want to go through that again, especially when he's escalated into helping murder people.

  Sighing, Alec agrees with me.

  "Then how do I keep you safe?" he asks.

  "I can defend myself decently, but not against him," I reply.

  Two years ago, I started taking self-defense classes because of Jace and Ragnor. I never want to be an assault victim again.

  "You're afraid he'll kill you," Alec says.

  "Yes. Dying at the hands of a psycho isn't on my to-do list,"

  "How do I keep you and Max safe?"

  "I have no idea. Locked doors don't mean much to him."

  "Moving is still an option."

  "We can't afford it, Alec. You'd have to find another vet clinic. I'd lose the salon. Max and Trevor would lose their friends."

  "Kai was the only friend I made at school," Max informs us.

  "I don't wanna wait until something happens to you guys," Alec says.

  "I'll shut the salon down indefinitely, I guess. And we'll go with your plan and pull the boys out of school," I reply.

  "Jace doesn't know where we live. We could be safe, but I'd rather not find out we weren't by coming home to my family dead."

  It takes hours of before the decision to stay here unless things get worse is made. I have a feeling we'll be moving before the year's over.

  "If anything suspicious happens when I'm at work, call the cops and my cell," Alec sighs.

  I know he's not happy about leaving us virtually unprotected. I'm not either, but I hate the idea of leaving our house because we're afraid.

  "I will. The boys will be in the salon with me until you get home, okay?" I murmur, kissing him softly.

  He offers me a worn smile. I hate seeing him so stressed out.

  "I'm sorry people are doing this," I tell him.

  The only thing this really does is make him stare at me like I've lost it.

  "Magnus, it isn't your fault. You haven't done anything wrong," he replies.

   "If I were human, you wouldn't have to worry about me," I retort.

   "People attack people, Magnus. The sole fact that we're a couple could get us attacked if you were human. It might get us attacked now."

   "I'd tear them apart if they went after you."

  To help him relax, I make us a bubble bath with lavender oil in it. I don't plan on it going any further than this.

  "Have I mentioned how sweet you are?" he asks, kissing me shyly.

  "Not today," I smirk.

  "You are the sweetest, most beautiful guy ever."

  "I disagree, but I think we're both biased."

  I need this with him.

  "We're fighting a lot, aren't we?" Alec murmurs, tracing the tattoo on my wrist with his fingertip.

  "Yeah, we are. I really hate your brother. Almost every bad thing that's happened to us has been his fault," I reply.

  "I'm sorry we're fighting so much. I just--You're so calm about this, and I'm not calm about it. I'm terrified. And you being calm scares me because I think you don't realize how bad it is."

  "I'm terrified too, Alec. I'm calm because I don't want Max getting scared. Like I said before, I know exactly how bad it is. I lived with Ragnor for eight years, remember?"

  "I know you did. Before this, we argued, what, once a year? We've had two fights in two days. The last one was in front of Max."

  "He knows we still love each other and that we won't hurt each other. It's because we're both stressed out."

  "Stress doesn't even cover it. There needs to be a bigger word."

  "I know. You've got more on your plate to deal with than I do. However I can help, I will, darling. I'm serious. If you wanna relax with a glass of wine and a book, just say the word and Max and I will leave you alone."

  "I don't want you guys to leave me alone. Something might happen."

  "I was meaning we wouldn't bug you. We'd play quietly with Max's toys in the living room or something. We're gonna get through this, darling."

  "I thought you meant leaving the house. I'm turning into a control freak."

  "If I thought you were controlling me, I'd tell you. I get why you're worried about us leaving."

  I rub Alec's back until he goes to sleep tonight. Lying in my arms, he seems so fragile right now. While I'm watching him sleep, I let my own worries roam free. I'm more scared than he needs to know.


End file.
